Mr Speaker faces Euro pair in Hill Prince

ELMONT, N.Y. – After disappointing on dirt in the Travers, Mr Speaker returns to turf in Saturday’s Grade 3, $500,000 Hill Prince Stakes at 1 1/8 miles.

The Hill Prince replaces the Grade 1 Jamaica on the calendar. The Jamaica was moved to July 5 and renamed the Belmont Derby, which Mr Speaker won. Mr Speaker defeated several European-based horses in the race, and he will face two European challengers Saturday: Cabral and Sloane Avenue.

Cabral, a son of Henrythenavigator, is 2 for 7, with both wins coming over Polytrack. He has yet to win on turf, but he has run well over that surface.

“He has good performances on grass, and the form from his races on the grass is pretty good,” said Christophe Ferland, the trainer of Cabral.

Sloane Avenue has shipped in from Newmarket for trainer Jeremy Noseda. Sloane Avenue is a Kentucky-bred son of Candy Ride, and his dam, Apt, is a half-sister to Blame, the Breeders’ Cup Classic winner of 2010.

Sloane Avenue is 2 for 3, with both of his wins coming on Polytrack. He ran fifth in his one turf try but came out of that race sick, according to Wayne Tanner, the assistant to Noseda.

Others entered in the Hill Prince, run at 1 1/8 miles, are Daddy’s Kid, Pumpkin Rumble, Smooth Daddy, Sheldon, and Tourist.